Fab 5: Freezer Foods

Freezer food is a great time-saver for cooking! I love having already prepped or ready to prep food in my freezer. I try to keep these items stocked at all times.

photo courtesy of patpitchaya/freedigitalphotos.net

1. Roasted, cubed chicken. I add this to everything. Soup, pasta, casseroles, you name it and it saves serious time. No mess, no fuss. And much cheaper if you buy the chicken on sale!

2. Hamburger meat. Now when I was pregnant with Kevin, I actually froze cooked and seasoned ground beef. Much more of a time-saver but I don't do that on a regular basis. But we eat a lot of hamburger so I keep it around.

3. Black beans. I buy a big bag of dried beans, cook them in the Crock-Pot, and put them in freezer bags once they have cooled. It's cheaper and less salty.

4. Boneless, skinless chicken. This is only prep handy if you take the chicken out of its original packaging, cut off any fat, and freeze flat in freezer bags. It's a cinch to thaw and then cut up to use in your favorite recipe. Because thawing chicken in those original packages makes me want to be a vegetarian.

5. Frozen veggies. I always keep peas, corn, and broccoli. They don't spoil, they're really easy to measure to add to Micah's food, and they're cheap!

What's always in your freezer?

Fab 5: Children's Books, Part One

Reading is obviously a necessary skill. You can't even fill out a job application without being literate. Early reading is a fantastic way for parents to bond with children and prepare them for academic success.  It's also a great boost for children with slow speech development. Ask me how I know. (Those aren't scholarly sources but you can find some if you look.) 

I said all that to say this- we read a lot! Micah could be read to for hours at a time but I always fall asleep after 45 minutes. Kevin's working up for reading "big kid" books for 20 or 30 minutes. One of the three big goals that I have for my kids is teaching them to love to read. We'll see if it happens. 

We have so many books that there is no way we could list five that were our total favorites. So this will be part one.

The Cat in the Hat is one of Micah's favorite books right now. We read it a lot and it doesn't drive me crazy after a couple of reads. That's always a plus for this mama.  As you can tell our copy is completely falling apart; it's been taped several times but I think it's about a goner. I'm pretty sure it was Justin's when he was little. 

My mom found Digger Man, along with two others for the boys. Kevin especially loves them and Micah can almost quote the whole thing. 

Micah received Click, Clack, Moo Cows That Type at Kevin's baby shower. It's a cute little nonsensical story that the boys enjoy. 

We enjoy Little Blue Truck so much that I'm going to look for the other one: Little Blue Truck Leads the Way. It has animal sounds and is an adorable story about helping others. 

And a beloved children's book Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? wraps up our five. It teaches colors and animals and of course there are others (see below picture). Micah can practically quote this one and they are Kevin's favorites. He loves to sit and look at them. 

What are your favorite children's books?